What Big Teeth You Have
written by: Shelby Padgett
I spat out every man after him.
They were endless.
Some well-intentioned, but most of them not.
Men with knives for hands who didn’t waste time kissing, but instead consumed me in one bite, their teeth bared, sharp from careful honing. Starving creatures and me, a feast laid out in front of them.
Ripe for the picking.
Somehow I hated them the least. They weren’t ashamed of their hunger. They pretended not to notice when my eyes glazed over.
I think they liked it, even, and I convinced myself I did as well.
There were others, too.
Cautious men with hands like feathers who said I was beautiful.
It was nice until it wasn’t and then I’d lie there, eyes shut, covering my face with my hands, unable to tolerate someone bearing witness to me. I could never explain it, and I resented the pity and confusion in their gazes.
How they’d approach me so slowly as if I were a wild animal that might attack at any moment, teeth bared, sharp from my own careful honing.
They always looked so small when I’d leave, like sheepish little boys. I could never meet their eyes after that, rattled from the violence of being touched so gingerly.
I would realize too late why.
They had shown their soft.
I could not recognize it.
I was used to sharp.
- What Big Teeth You Have - November 6, 2024
